Theorizing Teacher Induction as a Racial Project

• In Event: 75.041 - MTCC Roundtable Session 33
  In Roundtable Session: 75.041-5 - Recruiting, Preparing, and Retaining Teachers to Work in Diverse Communities and Contexts

Abstract

This critical literature review examines how teacher induction programs have attempted to engage novice teachers in examining issues of race and educational inequity. The author discusses findings from empirical studies of induction programs that have foregrounded issues of race and equity. Specific induction activities are identified and the potential for these activities to support the learning and development of novice teachers is discussed. The author also conducts a race-centered analysis to illustrate how teacher induction programs can operate as racial projects that work implicitly to maintain or disrupt racial inequities in schooling. This analysis contributes valuable insights that are necessary for theorizing teacher induction and designing induction approaches that account for the racialized nature of schooling and support equitable learning and growth for students and teachers alike. The author concludes with specific implications for a race-conscious model of teacher induction and offers a research agenda that aims to inform and advance such models.

Author

• Kimberly Oamek, University of Wisconsin - Madison